Hello, friends!
Let’s talk about self care…
Everyone and their mother seems to be talking about self care nowadays. I’m always seeing YouTube videos about the best practices for taking care of yourself, whether that be through taking a bath in the morning, doing yoga, what have you.
Being a busy college student, I don’t always feel like I have the time or resources to indulge in acts of self care that are recommended to me. I don’t have access to a bath and some days, I have way too much work to set aside time to take care of myself. If you’re busy like me (which I’m sure you are), you probably find it selfish to spend time on yourself when there’s so much to be done. I totally get this, and finding the relationship between being a good friend/daughter/sister/student and being good to myself is very tricky. I have found, though, that I am so much more productive if I take care of myself first.
I’m not always indulging in myself. I definitely place priority on work that’s due for the next day or any meetings I need to go to. However, I do make an effort to find little ways to practice self love, so that my “happy tank” is filled up. I do this through little things, like making sure I get at least eight hours of sleep a night, filling my body with foods that are good for me, and having thirty minutes or so of relaxation before I get into homework. When I’m really feeling indulgent, I’ll put on a face mask before bed and watch TV with a glass of wine in hand. I look like I should be in “13 Going on 30” when I do this, but you know how it is. When I feel like I have a million things to do, it’s important that I approach these tasks feeling my best.
Even though I’ve listed self care activities that I do on my own, you can also take care of yourself by spending time with people you love. When I know I’m about to have a busy week, I try to again “fill up my happy tank” by spending time with friends. For me, there’s nothing that soothes the soul more than good conversation. I’m all for coffee dates, making dinner with friends, or just chatting with people on the phone. My recommendation is to find something that works for you and ultimately brings you joy.
You may be thinking, “Leah, you’re saying all these things about self care, but I really don’t feel like there are enough hours in the day”. I completely understand. I’m constantly running around like a chicken with my head cut off. I have to make an active effort to schedule in down time during my day. Scheduling out my commitments through Google Calendar has helped me so much and lets me see when I am busy and when there are pockets of free time. And man, do I relish those moments of free time.
I hope you enjoyed this post, my lovelies! Feel free to let me know any thoughts you have about self care in the comments. I would love to know the things that you do to take care of yourself. Be on the look out for more blog posts soon!
-Love Ling
Love Ling 